There’s never been a doubt about the quality of Rick Ankiel’s arm. Back when he was a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals he showed exceptional promise until the yips took ahold of him and he lost the plate. Having since moved to the outfield (and the Washington Nationals), Ankiel has shown on numerous occasions that while he might not have been accurate at sixty feet, six inches, from farther away he’s deadly.

With the bases loaded on Monday and a mid-outfield flyout, normally one would expect an easy run, particularly with someone as fast as the Astros’ Jordan Schafer on third. Instead, Ankiel unleashes a BEAUTIFUL throw, that goes to home plate on the fly and shows that Schafer was quite prudent in staying put.

I agree with the announcers, it’s not often that a simple throw from an outfielder, particularly one that doesn’t result in a play, deserves a highlight, but this one absolutely does.